Wayward Manor: Neil Gaiman’s video game debut

If you’re familiar with the name Neil Gaiman, chances are you’re familiar with his work in the world of comics (Sandman, Marvel:1602) and novels (American Gods, Coraline). If you like Gaiman’s work then you should be pleased to know that he’s trying out his storytelling in a new medium, video games.

Announced in late July, and set for a tentative shipping date December 2013, Wayward Manor has the player set into the spectral shoes of a ghost tasked with emptying out Wayward Manor of unwanted (living ) guests.

According to the author, the story will be set in the “roaring twenties” and inspired by classic cinematic tales of the macabre like Arsenic and Old Lace and Blithe Spirit. To make the game, Gaiman is collaborating with THE ODD GENTLEMEN, the studio known for releasing the silent film inspired game, P.B. Winterbottom.

The team behind Wayward Manor is looking to push the game via crowd-funding and has set up several package tiers for those wanting to help the production along. Packages range from a simple game pre-order ($10.00) to a dinner with Mr. Gaiman at the Magic Castle in Los Angeles ($10,000).

I am a Gaiman fan, and especially love his work on Coraline and The Graveyard Book. If he brings those same dark and magical sensibilities to bare in Wayward Manor, I’m sold.

About author

Rob Walker is a writer and filmmaker in Colorado, and is creator of the comedy web series Victorian Cut-out Theatre. He loves horror films and comic books (American Vampire, Jonah Hex, The Flash, Planetary). Rob has been a Sherlockian since the age of ten, is a Dark Tower junky and believes that Indiana Jones is the greatest cinematic hero ever created. You can follow him on twitter at: @timidwerewolf and see his other writings and videos at robwalkerfilms.com